Monday, August 17, 2009

Fresh Mango Cheesecake

We received two cases of mangoes last week. A generous gesture from family in New York, except most of them were bruised. Not bruised to the point that they were completely ruined but bruised to the point where it was impossible to just sink your teeth into it the way a mango is meant to be eaten. But I just could not bare to throw them away; even the thought felt wrong. So I decided to extract the pulp and save it for cooking and baking. Here's the best of it.

Fresh Mango Cheesecake

Serves 6 to 8

3 large, very ripe mangoes (or a cup of store-bought puree)

2 tsp cornstarch

8 oz low fat or fat free cream cheese

1 egg plus 1 egg white

2 tbsp plus 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar

Flaxseed Crust

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

3/4 cup all purpose flour

3 tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp light brown sugar

1. Peel the mangoes and slice off the flesh (discard seed) and transfer to a blender. Puree until smooth. Pour the puree in a saucepan over medium heat, whisk in cornstarch and 2 tablespoon of confectioner's sugar. Allow to thicken, about 10 to 12 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Blend the remaining ingredients plus half of the puree until smooth.

3. Pour into the prepared crust, followed by the remainder of the mango puree. Run a table knife vertically down, through both the cheesecake and mango layers, to create a swirl pattern on the top.

4. Bake in a water bath at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, bring to room temperature and refrigerate for at least five hours or overnight before serving.

To make the crust:

Combine all the crust ingredients in a food processor until crumby. Evenly press along the bottom of an 8" spring form pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 to 2 minutes until lightly golden brown. Remove and set on wire rack to cool before adding filling.